Put the stress on sweetness

EVA COHEN

The approaching holiday of Rosh Hashanah, the New Year, is the holiday for atonement and forgiving but, like most Jewish holidays, it also is known for its special and unique foods.

Rosh Hashanah falls over two days and the holiday foods are eaten throughout, but a special meal is held after the prayer service on erev Rosh Hashanah, the first night. Unlike Shabbat, where a straight, braided challah is eaten, on Rosh Hashanah, after the Kiddush (the blessing over the wine), a round challah is eaten and dipped in honey. The round challah symbolizes the lifecycle and the cycle of the year. The challah is dipped in honey, symbolizing our wish for a sweet New Year. Sometimes, raisins are also added to the challah to make it even sweeter.

The most common saying at this time of year is "Shana tova u'metuka" – "Have a good and sweet New Year." In the Torah, honey represented good living and wealth, and the land of Israel is often referred to as "the Land of Milk and Honey." After the challah, apples are also dipped into the honey, and a prayer is said asking G-d for a sweet year. Similar to the roundness of the challah, the round shape of the apple symbolizes a hope that the next year will be joyous from the beginning until it goes full circle.

On the second night of Rosh Hashanah, we eat a new fruit that we have not yet eaten this season and we say the Shehechiyanu. This blessing thanks G-d for keeping us alive and bringing us to this season. This ritual is meant to remind us to appreciate the fruits of the earth and the fact that we are alive and free to enjoy them. Although any fruit can be used, the pomegranate is most common. It is said that this fruit contains 613 seeds, one for each of the mitzvot (commandments) in the Torah. For fun, children will often sit and count each of the seeds of the fruit to see how close the total comes to 613. In the Torah, the land of Israel is also praised for its pomegranates, making this fruit particularly special. Upon blessing it, we are also wishing that our good deeds in the coming year will be as plentiful as the pomegranate's many seeds.

Rosh Hashanah literally means "Head of the Year." To symbolize this, the head of a fish or lamb is traditionally eaten. Just as the brain in our head directs our thoughts, emotions and actions, Rosh Hashanah directs the coming year. On this day, we stock up on foodstuffs for the year, and pray that the Jewish people should be a leader, a light unto the nations, through our righteous acts. Fish is also eaten because it is symbolic of fertility and abundance. It is often served as gefilte fish.

Another common Ashkenazi food for Rosh Hashanah is tzimmes, an eastern European recipe for honey-baked carrots. The Yiddish word meren means carrots, but it also means "to increase," therefore, carrots symbolize the hope that we will increase our good deeds in the coming year. Some tzimmes recipes add prunes, sweet potatoes or even meat to the sweet carrots.

Sides to the meal can include spinach and rice; spinach to symbolize a green year with plenty of produce ahead and rice to reinforce the hope for plenty. Desserts continue on the same theme, with options of honey cake or teiglach, but anything with honey or a sweet taste will nicely end the meal. Many of the desserts are the same for Sephardi Jews. For instance, honey-nut cake is eaten in Turkey; there, it is called tishpishti.

Many Rosh Hashanah food customs are similar for Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews, as the wish for a sweet New Year is universal, but there are some unique ones. For example, while everyone eats sweet dates, most Sephardim and Ashkenazim eat them as they are, but some Moroccon Jews add a gourmet touch. A mixture of ground sesame seeds, anise seeds and powdered sugar is served as a dip for the dates, as well as the apples. Before eating, the prayer Yehi Ratzon is recited: "As we eat this date, may we date the New Year that is beginning as one of happiness and blessing, and peace for all mankind. Blessed are Thou, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree." Sephardim may also recite Yehi Ratzon over leek, spinach, swiss chard or beetroot.

B'teiyavon! Eat well!

Eva Cohen is a travelling freelance writer.

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